Apparatus for landing airships



Nov. 5, 1929. KRELL 1,734,812

AI PARATUS FOR LANDING AIRSHIPS Filed July 16. 1926 Patented Nov. 5, 1929 UNITED STATES OTTO KBEIIII, OF IBERLIN-DAHLEM, GERMANY hummus FOR nmnmo AIRSHIPS Application filed July 16, 1926, Serial No.

My invention relates to apparatus for landing airships. According to a generally prevailing opinion mooring towers or poles have in comparison with rotary hangars the advantage that the landed aircraft upon the mooring tower is less endangered by vertical gusts than during a landin in which the airship is directly housed in the rotary hangar. The lateral guidance of the airship behind the rotary hangar has proved perfectly safe in practice. The influence of vertical gusts on the other hand becomes the more objectionable the greater the size of the aircraft. This applies particularly to airships of the rigid typewhich are more sensitive to a contact with the ground than those of the non-rigid type. The combination of a mooring tower with a stationary hangar would have the disadvantage that under certain conditions, for instance when the direction of the wind is unfavorable the airship might have to wait a 10 time moored to the tower until it woul d be possible to house it in the station- '25 arflthangar with favorable wind.

y im roved landing apparatus eliminates these culties by roviding a floating hangar or one adapted to turn on the solid ground with a mooring tower or pole at the an leaward end.

The mooring tower or pole is according to my invention provided with suitable gear, such as pulley blocks or travelling crabs which facilitate the lowering of the point of attachment of the aircraft from the point of the tower down to the opening of the hangar so that the airship may be safely housed in the ban ar.

In or or to render the airship less sensitive against vertical ts, it is best to unload it as far as possib e at its rear end, i. e. to give it there the highesltflpgssible buoyancy while simultaneously ha g. up and y suspending at this rear end a chem-link like combination of ballast weights which are attached to a rope or the like. During the descent and ascent of the airshi along the tower the balancing wei hts wi be piled up upon the ground and li ed off again, alternately relieving and loading the rear portion 122,995, and in Germany August 14, 1925.

of the airship and thus counteracting the vert1cal of wind. By means of my improvi ed apparatus the airship firmly moored with its point to the vertical guiding structure may be protected against the effect of vertical gusts of wind, hauled down and housed in the hangar independent of the wind prevailing at the time.

If a floatin hangar is used the balancing bodies must 0 course, be likewise constructed as floating bodies.

In the drawing aflixed hereto some embodiments of my invention are diagrammatically illustrated by' way of example. In the drawing: v

Fig. 1 represents a side elevation of the landing apparatus with the airship moored to the'point of the tower,

Fig. 2, represents an additional mooring of the unloaded rear portion ofthe airship with the ground, and

Fig. 3, represents the airship in the position ready for housing 'in the hangar or shelter.

Like parts are indicated by like letters of reference throughout all the figures of the drawing.

Referring to the drawing 1. is the hangar, shelter or shed for housing the aircraft provided witha mooring or landing tower or pole 2. 3 is the airship itself which is moored to the point of attachment 4 of the landing tower 2. The point of attachment 4 ma be lowered down to approximately the mi dle of the opening or gate of the hangar. 5 5' are the ballast bodies which may be constructed as balls, floats or the like and which are attached to the rope 6 at definite distances apart. These ballast bodies are attached to the unloaded rear end of the air- 90 ship at the point 7 and are hauled up whereby a stabilization of the airship-is brought about.

B hauling down the point of attachment 4, t e airship is brought into the position shown in Fig. 3 in readmess for running into 95 the hangar 1 in which she can now be housed comfortably.

Various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention,.and I desire, there- 10 fore that only such limitations shall be placed thereon as are imposed by the prior art.

I claim as my invention 1-- 1. Landing apparatus for aircraft comprising in combination, a floating hangar, a mooring tower mounted .upon the leeward end of said hangar, means for lowering the point of attachment of the aircraft from the point of said 'tower to about the middle of the hangar opening, and a chain of floating ballast bodies attached to the unloaded rear end of the moored aircraftf 2. In an arrangement for landing and housing airships in combination a hangar movable to place its entrance accurately leeward, a mast mounted upon the leeward entrance of said hangar, a device vertically movably mounted on said mast and having means for attaching the airship to it, and means for lowering the attached airship by said device from its attaching position at the mast to substantially the middle of said v hangar entrance.

3. Apparatus for landing and housing aircraft comprising in comblnation a hangar movable to place its entrance accurately leeward and a mooring tower mounted upon the leeward entrance of said hangar, means for mooring the craft on said tower, and means for lowering said mooring means from the attaching point on said tower to about the middle of said hangar entrance, and a chain of ballast bodies attached to the unloaded rear end of said aircraft during the mooring operation.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

OTTO KRELL. 

